The legacy of pioneering New Zealand winemaker Tom McDonald has been marked on what would have been his 112th birthday.
Church Road's iconic TOM range named in his honour - including the TOM Chardonnay 2016, TOM Syrah 2015 and TOM Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot 2015 - was released by the Hawkes Bay winery on September 12.
Church Road winemaker Chris Scott says McDonald was one of the most important early pioneers of the modern, quality-focused wine industry we have today. He died in 1987, but was regarded as an outstanding figure in the wine industry for many years, being appointed an OBE (Order of the British Empire) in the 1974 New Year Honours for his services to winemaking.
"His Cabernet Sauvignon was arguably the first truly great New Zealand wine: in the 1960s people went on a waiting list to get on the mailing list to get a bottle.
"He helped demonstrate the quality potential for viticulture in Hawke's Bay at a time when the industry nationally was focused on cheap, bulk fortified and table wine made from inferior grape varieties," Scott says.
The vineyard in which Church Road's chardonnay grapes are grown was established in the 1960s by McDonald, also known in industry circles as the Godfather of New Zealand wine.
With a cement hard clay pan a couple of feet below the surface there are rumours McDonald used dynamite to blast the post holes.
When asked if this might account for the subtle smokiness evident in their recently released TOM Chardonnay, Scott chuckles: "I never thought of that."
He says the TOM range is the ultimate expression of McDonald's vision. Only the very best vintages are given the TOM title; if a season isn't exceptionally good, the wine won't make the grade.
Scott believes this year's release is up there with the best. In fact, in a recent account of the Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot, New Zealand wine critic Michael Cooper asked: "Is this the greatest red wine ever crafted in New Zealand? A provocative question, I know, but it's worth considering."
The release of Church Road TOM is met with similar enthusiasm by many New Zealand wine lovers.
The TOM Chardonnay 2016, hand crafted from grapes grown in a cool vineyard exposed to the sea breeze, has been called "the best and most modern expression I've had from the TOM range" by master sommelier, Cameron Douglas.
Full bodied and powerful, with fresh elements of citrus, it's overlaid with aromas of roasted nuts, oak - and just a hint of that "gunflint" smokiness.
Scott says the TOM Syrah 2015 grapes were grown in a vineyard in the Bridge Pa Ttriangle –an area of Hawke's Bay he feels doesn't get the recognition it deserves.
Only the third release of TOM Syrah, Scott calls it a "beautiful red wine, full bodied and fragrant. It has texture and warmth, but maintains the fragrance that is the hallmark of syrah."
His personal favourite, however, is the Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot. Cabernet grapes are notoriously unforgiving, if harvested too early they create a wine that tastes like "minted green peas"; if overripe they lose their fragrance.
"There is only a window of about four days in which to harvest the grapes when they are at their best," he says.
The TOM Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot 2015 exemplifies the power of the perfectly ripe cabernet grape. It's full bodied, plush and rich, but balanced by a gentle acidity. The core of ripe, dark berry fruit, plum and black cherry, is completed by aromatic notes of lavender, vanilla and thyme.
Scott says when he is conceptualising a new wine, he has a mental picture of how it should be.
"As I've got older, that picture has changed. We've got better at growing grapes, and my opinion of wine has evolved."
In general terms, Scott says the wines should show aroma and flavour, coupled with earthiness and "funk", but with the fruits in the forefront.
"The mouthfeel should be restrained and pure; it should be full-bodied and rich; but not so much structure that it overwhelms."
He says great wine can be likened to "an iron fist in a velvet glove". And this serves as the best description of Church Road's most recent homage to its founding father.
Church Road TOM will be released annually from September.
For information on the new TOM range, visit the Church Road website, www.church-road.com